Rune Factory Review

Platform: Nintendo DS
Genre: RPG/ Farming Simulation
Number of Players: 1
Publisher: Natsume
Release Date: Third Quarter of 2007
Official Website
Writer: Kalina

Rating: 7.0

Pros:far more to do on the farm than ever before, thanks to new extensive customization/ crafting system, and also the joys of going online and trading online. Nicely improved graphics and sound (as compared to HM: DS) as well.

Cons:the battle/dungeon crawler system is uneven and often tedious. not much personality to the townspeople, especially the girls

Rune Factory is the first in the Harvest Moon series to really try something new and innovative. While it succeeds in providing a unique twist on the Harvest Moon formula, it doesn’t do quite as good a job creating a solid game-play experience. Some of Rune Factory’s elements (such as farming, customization, story, graphics, and cooking) make the game a joy to play. However, others (particularly the romance and the fighting) drag some of the fun out of the experience. Still, the game is hardly broken by any means. In fact, Rune Factory is one of the first Harvest Moon games I have played to be so remarkably glitch-free (Harvest Moon is rather infamous for their ridiculously huge glitches – just play a few hours of HM: DS and you will know exactly what I’m talking about).

Rune Factory certainly has more to commend it for than just a lack of glitches, though. One has to praise the team over at Natsume for really taking a risk with Rune Factory, especially in a time when many games are content to play it safe, conforming to the standard elements of their genre. Mixing old Harvest Moon game-play with new ideas creates a concoction that is, if nothing else, unique. Of course, just like your first experiment in cooking, for every delicious spoonful, there are a few less savory bites. The game-play, for example, works pretty much everywhere except the dungeons. At home on the farm, there are a multitude of activities to keep the gamer busy. For starters, there’s harvesting crops, foraging for various flora and fauna, fishing, cooking recipes, and raising animals, staples since very first Harvest Moon game. However, these old standbys of HM game play have changed. Thanks to the addition of online play (a very smart move on Natsume’s part) and a more detailed customization system, the basic elements of Harvest Moon don’t feel stale or threaten to become nearly as tedious as in other previous Harvest Moon entries. With online play, crops and other items (i.e. fish), can be raised to higher levels when traded with a fellow gamer. As for the customization system, the word extensive doesn’t even begin to do it justice. Build the right workshops, and you can create basically anything. From weapons to tools, and even accessories (necklaces, armor, shields, and other items that will give your character special stat upgrades), the diehard player can spend hours upon hours just trying out different recipes for various creations.

In terms of things to do around the farm, Rune Factory has continued what HM: DS began, upping the challenge of the Harvest Moon series. Similar to HM: DS, Rune Factory also provides girls that are more difficult to pursue. Unfortunately, unlike HM: DS, the majority of the girls are not nearly as hard to romance, and their personalities tend towards the bland. In addition, in old Harvest Moon games, even though there often weren’t a ton of different dialogues for the girls, they at least got updated each time the girls went up a heart level. By contrast, in Rune Factory, the girls’ dialogue rarely seems to get updated, even as they get higher romance and friendship levels. As a result, aside from the portraits, there doesn’t seem to be much difference between each prospective object of affection. There are some good hints of characterization (especially for the two girls Mist and Felicity), but for the most part, the characterization is very vague. It would have been nice to see more of the girl’s personalities made a bit more interesting with more dialogue. Honestly, the girls and townspeople make robots look like Shakespearean thespians in comparison. At least let the characters of Rune Factory have more than four things to say throughout the course of the game!

All this being said though, it is nice that the main character of a Harvest Moon game finally talks. The story also provides some of the depth that the characterization is missing. While not epic by any means, it is much more involving and serious than any other Harvest Moon entry so far. Nicely written and just intriguing enough, it gives a little something extra to the game. The nicely varied music and detailed and vivid graphics also compliment Rune Factory wonderfully.

Besides the minor quibble with the lack of characterization, the one aspect of Rune Factory that doesn’t work quite so well is the most predominant of the new elements it introduces to the Harvest Moon formula, dungeon fighting. The fighting is your basic action hack-and-slash. After assigning a weapon to a button, you press the button quickly for a regular attack or hold it for a charge attack. Complicated, the fighting definitely isn’t. The hit detection system is also a little spotty; sometimes, monsters and the main character collide halfway through each other.

The dungeons do provide a challenge. The challenge just isn’t exactly genuine. In order to get to the boss of each dungeon, every single generator of monsters (there are a multitude within each dungeon) must be destroyed. Of course, since the monsters take out a substantial amount of damage with each hit and there are usually only one or two save points per dungeon, this means that the player can’t beat the dungeon in one go around or even two. Or three. Or four. Or five. Or six. (You get the idea). As the dungeons get harder and longer, don’t be surprised to spend more than a month of game time simply trying to level up your weapon and stats. The fighting, unique and exciting at first, ends up becoming repetitive and annoying. It’s a continual circle; once the player moves on to the next dungeon, things become exciting again, only to dull as they are forced to travel through the dungeon again and again to level up.

In spite of a few mishaps in terms of game-play, though, Rune Factory is still quite a good game. Fans of Harvest Moon (who will have more patience for the uneven fighting) will find much to appreciate. As for others, provided they also have patience, the game is certainly enjoyable. Still, regardless of patience, all gamers should at least give Rune Factory a try, as its innovation provides a gaming experience like no other. All in all, Rune Factory is a promising new branch for the Harvest Moon series. The fighting simply feels a bit unfinished. Hopefully, the next entry in the series will polish up the new elements and capitalize on all the promise that Rune Factory has.